For Ireland, Apple case is about crisis management

It seems that every headless chicken in Ireland was set loose when the European Commission announced that Apple had to pay Ireland €13bn in back taxes.

People who are usually fairly staid seemed to lose the run of themselves, with some wanting to immediately take the money and run. Others declared that they would never take the money.

They had very quickly forgotten the little codicil that the money might indeed belong to other European countries.